Confronting Your Pastor

That’s false. I grew up in a pastor’s home, married a pastor’s daughter, and became a pastor myself, so I know better than most that pastors are sinners saved by God’s grace, just like every other believer.

*True or false: pastors need other believers to help them grow.

That’s true. No matter how close a pastor is to God, he is still an imperfect being, and will be until he becomes like Jesus in the next life. Pastors need mentors and friends and family just like anybody else.

*True or false: pastors sometimes need to be confronted about an issue in their life.

That’s true. We all have our blind spots, pastors included. Pastors can be lazy, or bitter, or insensitive, or arrogant – just like non-clergy. If someone who loves a pastor confronts him about a possible sin, and that pastor changes, then he will grow more quickly to become like Christ.

*True or false: a pastor’s wife is the only person qualified to confront him.

That’s false. While she may be in the best position to do so – living with him all week long – she may become so accustomed to his faults that she’s learned to overlook them. Because my own wife has been so positive toward me and my ministry over the years, when she has taken the risk of confronting me, I know she’s usually right.

However, a pastor has interactions with many people when his spouse isn’t around, such as staff members, board members, counselees, ministry leaders, and people in the community. A pastor’s wife can’t possibly witness all of his relationships.

*True or false: God may choose to use you to confront your pastor about an issue.

That’s true. He may use you.

Imagine that some men from your church invite you to play basketball, and your pastor comes along. You’re excited because you’ll have a chance to see who he really is away from the church.

But it doesn’t take long to discover that your pastor is extremely competitive. He travels with the ball but won’t admit it, fouls other players without owning up to it, and throws in a few profane words at inopportune times. And besides, every time his team scores, he engages in trash talk.

You’re hurt, disappointed, and even a bit angry. What, if anything, should you do about it?

Your options:

You can let it go and treat his behavior as an anomaly.

You can ask other players what they thought about the pastor’s behavior.

You can go home and pray for your pastor.

You can write a letter to the church board and tell them how he misbehaved.

You can throw the ball at the pastor, or give him an elbow on the next rebound, or …

You can talk to the pastor yourself.

I recently saw the film We Bought a Zoo starring Matt Damon. (Great film, by the way.) In the film, Damon’s character has a talk with his son and refers to the importance of “twenty seconds of insane courage.”

In other words, if you have something important to say to someone, but you’re afraid, you only need “twenty seconds of insane courage” to say it.

Why should you be the one to say something?

Because you witnessed his behavior … which is why you can’t pass this assignment off on someone who didn’t experience it.

Some tips:

*Talk to him directly. Jesus said in Matthew 18:15, “If your brother sins against you [and your pastor is your brother, too], go and show him his fault, just between the two of you.”

Instead of pronouncing judgment upon him (“May God strike you dead for using foul language!”), ask him a question, like:

“Why do you use those words out here but not in the pulpit?”

“Why can’t you admit that you’re guilty of fouls like the rest of us?”

Even if the pastor is in a competitive zone and brushes you off initially, if he’s truly a man of God, he’ll eventually grapple with your questions.

I have a theory: in the majority of cases where a pastor is involuntarily terminated, those who are angry with him (staff members, the church board, others in the congregation) have never shared their concerns with him directly. They tell everybody except the pastor … a clear violation of Jesus’ words.

*Talk to him privately. Nobody likes to lose face by being reprimanded in public, including pastors. Jesus says to “go and show him his fault, just between the two of you.”

If you’ve trained yourself to confront other believers, then you could wait until after the game and ask the pastor if you could speak with him for a moment. During those “twenty seconds of courage,” let him know that you love him but that his behavior stepped over a line. Next:

*Talk to him lovingly. Jesus says, “If he listens to you …”

Let me be honest here. Many pastors are not good listeners. They love to hear themselves talk but aren’t quite as generous when others are speaking. You need to use a tone that compels your pastor to hear you. I’d opt for a gentle tone (not a judgmental one) as mentioned in Galatians 6:1. Finally:

*Talk to him redemptively. What’s the aim of any confrontation? Jesus encourages us to win our brother over.

We’re not trying to harm our pastor, but restore him. He’s temporarily become fragmented. We’re trying to help him become whole again.

Let me end today’s article with a quote from Ken Sande in his book The Peacemaker:

“Your responsibility to go to someone who is caught in sin does not vanish just because that person is in a position of authority over you (e.g., an employer or a church elder). Since these people are as human as you are, they will also sin and need correction (see 1 Tim. 5:19-20). Of course, you may need to exercise special care in choosing your words when you talk with such a person. Speak in a respectful manner, and do all you can to affirm your regard for that person’s authority. In doing so, you may not only encourage needed changes, but also increase that person’s respect for you.”

Next time, I’ll discuss various ways that pastors respond when someone confronts them.

Have you ever confronted your pastor about an issue? If so, how did it turn out?

Check out our website at www.restoringkingdombuilders.org You’ll find Jim’s story, recommended resources on conflict, and a forum where you can ask questions about conflict situations in your church.

Some in the church confronted my x-pastor because he was getting all of his sermon off the internet, reading them word for word. Telling as personal stories the stories that were.in the internet sermon. Before confronting read Anton Bosh contending book and everything on how to do it with the right spirit, studied for two months, prayed.
To make a very sad story short the pastor resorted to name calling,formed a clique,set us against each other ended up dividing the church and the community.He stated he wanted them ( those who felt he should study ) gone So gone was almost half the church and all of the local (rural) members.Last I heard he is still reading another man’s bread for his paycheck . He has less than 20 people in that church, most are his relatives, the rest come from other towns several miles away. Those who live close around the church are not welcome there. Troublemakers you know.
I can’t help but wonder how things could of been so different,it grieves us deeply.

I’m so sorry for what happened in your church. Unfortunately, some large-church pastors encourage smaller-church pastors to buy their sermons on the internet. These megachurch pastors make money from selling their sermons. Any pastor who buys sermons online needs to tell the congregation that’s what he’s doing. It’s wrong to pass off a sermon you bought as if it’s your own.

How was this handled by people in your church? Did they suspect the pastor was buying sermons or did they know it for a fact? When they confronted the pastor, did they do it as individuals or as a group? What was their spirit like?

Sadly, there is little information online or in book form to help a church board or a congregation when they’re thinking about disciplining or removing a pastor from office. You might want to return to this blog in a few weeks or check out my website at http://www.restoringkingdombuilders.org. I have a book coming out that deals with this issue in depth.

The church the pastor is leading will not last. It’s just a protest movement at this point in time.

Try and resist blaming the pastor for everything that happened. While he may be at fault in certain ways, it’s possible that others in the church didn’t handle matters very well, either.

I’ll be praying that God will bring peace to your church and community. Remember Romans 12:18!